Door closer and check



Jan. 14, 1930. PVLANG 1,743,360

DOOR CLOSER AND CHECK Filed Jan. 12, 1923 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 P. LANG DOOR CLOSER AND CHECK Jan. 14, 1930.

Filed Jan. 12, 1923 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Jan. 14, 1930. P. LANG 1,743,350,

DOOR CLOSER AND CHECK Filed Jan. 12, 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Jan. 14, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PHILIP LANG, OF CEDAR FALLS, IOWA, ASSIGNOR TO WAGNER MANUFACTURING 1 COMPANY, OF CEDAR FALLS, IOWA, A CORPORATION OF IOWA DOOR CLOSER AND CHECK Application filed January 12, 1923. Serial No. 612,334.

My invention relates to improvements in door closers and checks.

The object of my invention is to provide a closer for sliding doors and is more particularly designed for elevator doors, in which the door is opened against a compression spring and when released has a compara tively rapid movement for a certain distance, when said movement is gradually decreased until the door is nearly closed, when a very gradual final closing movement takes place, whereby there is practically no jar on the door and which obviates the usual noise in the rapidly closing door.

Another object of my invention is to provide a closer of this character in which the tension of the closing spring can be readily adjusted from the outside of the casing and in which the speed of the final closing movezo ment can also be regulated from the outside of the casing. 4 I

A still further object of my invention is to provide a closer which can be readily applied to any of the well known forms of sliding -doors without any modification thereof, and

at the same time providing a simple cheap and effective closer having certain details of structure and combination of parts hereinafter more fully set forth.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is the interior view of an elevator shaft showing my invention applied to the sliding elevator. door closer and showing in dotted lines the door open.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of the closer.

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 33 Figure 5. v

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view 49 taken on the line 4-4 Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of a modified form of door closer.

Figure 6 is a transverse horizontal sectional view taken on the line 66 Figure 5.

Referring now to the drawings 1 represents the elevator shaft having the usual track 2 upon which the door 3 slides by means of the hangers 4; all of which is well understood and needs no further description. The door is opened and closed by the toggle levers 5 and is connected to the elevator shaft l'or some support, all of which is fully understood and could be modified without departing from my invention.

The closer proper consists of the cylinder 5 11 having its lower end internally threaded as indicated at 15 and into which is screwthreaded the head 16 carrying the eye 12. The inner end of the cylinder head 16 is provided with the tapering projection 17, the

greatest diameter of which is considerable less than the diameter of the cylinder 11. The tapering rojection 17 at the center is provided wi h alongitudinally extending open ing 18, the upper nd of which communicates with the vupper en d of the projection and its lower end has a small passage 19 communieating therewith, said passage extending horizontally through the projection and communicating with the outer vertical wall thereof. The said passage 19 has a needle valve 20 intersecting it and whereby the passage of the liquid therethrough can be readily regulated from the outside of the cylinder.

'l/Vithin the cylinder 11 is the liquid piston 21 having the enlarged lower end 22 adapted toclosely fit the walls of the cylinder 11 and having in its lower end the recess 23. The diameter of the recess 23 is the same as the greatest diameter of the projection 17 in order to prevent any liquid contained in the cylinder 11 from entering the recess in the piston as fully shown in Figure 2'0f the drawings. In communication with the upper end of the recess 23 in the piston are a series of obliquely arranged openings 24, which have their upper ends in communication with the cylinder above the enlarged lower end 22 of the piston and which allows the passage of the fluid from above and below the piston as V screws on the threaded'portion 27.0fthe cylinder 11. Screwed on the threaded portion 17 of the cylinder below the cylinder head is of the cylinder. 7

fication shown in F1gure 5 of I the drawings like reference numerals 1nd1- a nut 28 above which is arranged a gasket29 and whereby a fluid tight connection is made between the cylinder and the lower end of cylinder head 25. The upper end of the cylinder head 25 is provided with a central opening 30 through which passes the piston rod 14,.

the upper end of which carries the eye 13. Surrounding the opening 30 is a recess'32 internally threaded as'indicated at 33 and into which is screwed the expanding nut 34for expanding the packing 35 tightly against the piston rod '14 to prevent the fluid from leaking from thecylinder.

Within the cylinder 11 is a coil spring 36 which has its upper end bearing against the cylinder head 25 and its lower end surrounding the upper reduced end of the piston 21 and bearing against the shoulder 37 formed by said reduced portion of the piston and which normally holds the piston in the downward position as shown in Figure 2 or the drawings. Carried by the piston rod 14 within the cylinder 11 is a separator plate 38 which is engaged on both sides by the spring 36 and which tends to equalize the tension of the spring and to hold it away from the walls In the. mod1 cate like parts. In this modification the cylinder, piston, spring and all the parts are constructed in the same manner as that shown in the preferred form with the exception of the cylinder head 16. In this torm the head 16 has avertical opening 39 arranged adjacent one wall thereof and hascommunicating with its lower end the outwardly flared opening 40 which communicates with the exterior of the projection of the head. 'Within the flared opening 40 is a ball valve 41 which is of r a diameter less than that of the outer end of the opening and greater than the inner end of the opening whereby when the ball is in its innermost position'the said ball closes the opening to prevent the passage of the liquid therethrough and when in its outer position "allows the passage of the fluid through the opening. In order to prevent or limit the outward movement of the ball valve 41 in the opening 40 Iprovide a stop 42 as clearly shown in Figure 5 of the drawings. In this modified form there is a slight vacuum below the piston and upon the upward movement of the piston any vacuum below the piston will draw the ball valve 41 towards the outer end of the opening and allow the fluid to pass -from above the piston.

In operation when the door is opened the toggle lever 6 is moved up and the free end 10 being connected to the eye 11 carried by the cylinder, the cylinder is drawn downand the piston rod being connected to the elevator shaft the piston remains stationaryp It is understood that the cylinder is filled or partially filled with fluid and as the cylinder travels downward theliquid above the piston passes through the openings 24 and fills the space below the piston. 'This is the opening operation and it is also understood that the opening operation just described compresses the'spring 36 and tends to draw the cylinder upwardly by its engagement with the cylinder head 25. The tension. of the spring can be readily varied by screwing thehead 25 up or down on the cylinder as desired. Upon releasing the door or starting on its closing 7 movement thespring 36 rapidly draws the cylinder upwardly, the passage of the liquid through the passages 24 regulating the speed of the cylinder upwardly. As the piston travels downwardly the projection 17 comes opposite the lower end of the hollow portion of the piston and the taper thereof gradually decreases the flow of liquid around the pro jection and gradually slows down the move= cut oil but the small passage 19 allows the liquid to flow very slowly from below the piston during the final closing of the door.

I In the opening operation of the door. where there .is a tight fit between the lower end of the piston and the tapered projection there would be a vacuum below which retards the opening operation and make itvery slow but the ball valve 41 will move outwardly to al-. low the passage of the liquid through the opening 39 and opening 40'past the, ball and allow of the rapid opening of the ,door.

Having thusfully described-my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: r

1. A door closer and check, comprising a cylinder, a piston therein and having a hollow lower end having passages communicating therewith, a spring normally holding the piston at the lower end of the cylinder, a projection carried by the lower end of thecylin der and having a tapering portion entering the hollow lower end of the piston and hav- I ing a passage therethrough and communicating with one side thereof a needle valve controlling said passage, and said projection having a lateraltapering passage communicating with the other side of the projection and a ball valve in the tapering passage for breaking the vacuum below the piston on its upward movement. I

cylinder a piston therein having a hollow lower end having passages communicating therewith, means for normally holding the piston at the lower end of the cylinder, a projection carried by the lower end of the cylinder and having a tapering portion entering the hollow lower end of the piston, and having a passage therethrough and communicating with one side thereof, and a ball valve in said passage and adapted to be closed by the pressure from the outside of the projection.

3. A door closer and check comprising a cylinder, a piston therein, having a hollow lower end having a passage communicating with the cylinder, a spring normally holding the piston at the lower end of the cylinder, a tapering projection carried by the lower end of the cylinder extending into the hollow lower end of the piston and having a passage therethrough communicating with a tapering lateral passage, and a ball valve in the passage'adapted to be closed by pressure from the outside of the projection.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

PHILIP LANG. 

